An Integrated Work System (IWS) is a manufacturing approach used in the tobacco industry to improve production performance by reducing losses and building employee ownership of results. It brings people, production processes and equipment into a common system of standards, performance routines and continuous improvement.
How IWS works in tobacco manufacturing
In a tobacco factory, teams can use IWS to identify and address losses such as machine stops and microstops, reduced line performance and recurring equipment problems. Operators and support teams review performance, investigate causes and take part in improvements. The aim is to make losses visible and build a workplace culture in which people take responsibility for preventing them.
IWS and production software
IWS is a way of organizing and improving manufacturing work; it is not software. Production monitoring and MES tools can provide timely information about machine and line performance to support IWS routines. The specific practices and terminology may vary between tobacco manufacturers.